(Why is the Red Tusk Dragon here...?　(And that too, clad in that purple light!)

　I shiver and shout in my mind.

　The giant red-fanged dragon's body slowly made its way through the dark forest towards me.

　Its purple light bewitchingly illuminates the surroundings, and the trees in the forest where the red hulking body collided with it make a screeching creaking sound in the darkness.

(.........it's like a nightmare world.)

　And something white blocked my mouth as I was stunned.

''--Mugu!
Shh. Quiet, Merle.

Ms. Illtimina?

　She kept her low profile and put her index finger to her lips.

　As it is, she opens the door behind her and pulls me into the shed without making a sound.

　The white hand leaves and I exhale, "Phew!

　Mr. Illtimina quickly hides himself by the window while giving me a sharp look out the window into the forest.

　I was stunned and asked in a subdued voice.

'Mr. Illtimina, are you awake?'
'The wind was cold I looked and I saw the door was open and I could see that Merle had gone out.
Oh I'm sorry.

　Oh, by the way, I forgot to close it, I forgot to close it.
　She laughs.

'No.' -- so I was worried about Marle and came after her, but I didn't expect her to be there, but I didn't think she was even a red fang dragon.
What the hell is that all about?
The Red Fanglong Gad died in the depths of the Great Forest of Aldoria. Perhaps he was affected by the aura of darkness - the demon's magical power left in the area. That was the result.

　Zzzzzn.

　A large tree on the path is snapped off.

　Its yellow muddy eyes no longer show any life, not even the thought of avoiding an obstacle.

　A large amount of saliva is spilling out of his lazy mouth.

''There is no longer any awareness of Gad over there. There is only the instinct of a wanderer to attack and devour the living.

.................

　gulping sound

　I spit.

'All right. All right, let's get out of here before they notice we're gone. We need to get out of here, now.
No. That might be hard to do now.

(Huh?)

　Mr. Illtimina says, a little frustrated.

''The distance is too close. The Red Fang Dragon's running ability is better than mine. And he's already aware of our presence.''
No.
'I'm sorry. I knew that Marle was concerned about the toggle cliffs. And yet I did not come to this conclusion. It was an error of judgment on my part.

　No, it's not!
　Who in the world could have imagined that the red-fanged dragon would come back to life?

　I shook my head, and Iltimina-san gave a small smile.

　With anxiety in my heart, I asked her about the other way.

'Then you'll fight?'

(...and that terrifying red fang dragon with its dark aura.)

　But Mr. Illtimina didn't answer, and often fell silent.

　Eventually, with a determined look on her face, she went to her backpack in the corner of the room.

　She pulled out a thin metal tube from it, about ten centimeters long, and let me hold it in my hand.

''Merle. You take this and head in the direction of Medis.
What?
This is a luminescent signal round. Twist it and the trigger will come out, so fire it into the air.

　Is this ... in the sky?

It's midnight, so the odds are 50/50, but if you notice this, my buddy Kirt Amandes and Solstice Wong will be there to pick you up.
Mr. Kilt and Miss Soltis?
"Yes, sir. ...but we will only shoot when we are 5,000 yards from the medis. That would be the limiting distance we could see from the medis.

　I stared at the metal tube in my hand.

　Then I look up at her.

'Okay. ...But what about you, Illtimina?

　From earlier, you've been talking about me and not about yourself.

　Illtimina-san's beautiful face smiled a little sadly.

''I'm going to stop that red fang dragon here.
Stranded?

　You're crazy!

　Because she was almost killed in a face-to-face battle with a red fang dragon before, and now that guy is enhanced with a dark aura!

...there's no way we can win.

　But she looks me in the eye and says, as if to remind me.　

'He's following the signs of the living now. One of us will have to take the bait.
Well, then...
We can't use Merle as bait, can we?
Huh.
Don't worry. If we stick to running away, we won't be hurt too soon, and we'll have more time. In the meantime, you should rendezvous with Kirt and Solstice and bring them back here, because with the three of you, I'm sure we can defeat the Red Dragon.

　thumping

　My feet are shaking.

　He's getting closer to the woodshed.

　Miss Illtimina is right.

　Maybe it's the best way to improve our chances of survival.

　Still, I didn't nod my head immediately.

　She said that from the tower to the city of Medis, it was 4,000 mades ... about 40 kilometers.

　Even if we were halfway there today, we still had 20 kilometers to go.

　If we're only five kilometers from Medis, that leaves us with fifteen kilometers to shoot a luminescent signal round.

Fifteen kilometers through the forest at night in the morning?

　Moreover, we have to wait for two of Mr. Illtimina's friends there, and from there, we have to get back here.

'It's going to take more than a day to get back here, okay?
I know, sir.

　She nodded, squatted down, and grabbed both my shoulders.

'At this time of year, the Red Moon follows the same trajectory as the sun. So head north. -- daytime, remember?
Yes.
Good.

　Iltimina laughed and hugged me.

'At the Toggle Cliffs, you said. 'I have faith in you, Miss Illtimina.' --and I believe in Marle, too, so I'm trusting him.'

　I wanted to cry.

　I fight it off and say.

"Promise me?
What?
He'll be alive until I get back.

　I don't want you to think about sacrificing yourself for me.

　I don't want Miss Illtimina to die!

　She looked surprised, then laughed softly.

　Her white pinky intertwines with my little finger.

'Very well. -- I, Iltimina Wong, will surely live to see you again.
Yes.

　She seemed happy as we stared at each other.

　I forced a smile and nodded, too.

　Then we were ready to go, and together we walked out of the forest hut and into the forest of nightmares.